Opening Night '08 was way worse, when the Lakers humbled Portland on national TV and Oden went down. But this start has been no treat: Roy's shot is off, Aldridge has a bruised knee and Andre Miller isn't helping much.

After giving up 111 points to Houston in a slow-paced game Saturday, the Blazers showed some defensive improvement Sunday. Or the Thunder were just trying to build a bigger house of bricks than them. The two teams combined to shoot 37 percent.

Nate McMillan stressed defense in the preseason, but Portland hasn't been playing enough of it. The Rockets scored 111 points against the Blazers on Saturday. "We know what we have to do, and it just comes down to effort," Brandon Roy told The Oregonian. "It's one thing to see everybody trying to do it. But there are a lot of plays where it doesn't seem like our effort is there." Portland improved Sunday in allowing only 74 points to the Thunder.